Strategies used to combat Swine Flu (AH1N1v) in Poland

The first cases of AH1N1 flu occurred May 2009 and a previously prepared strategy ‘The Polish Plan for Pandemics' was implemented by sanitation and medical services. Remedial actions to identify the virus, limit its spread and isolate sufferers lasted until summer holidays finished when pupils returned to school from abroad and parents. Sanitation and border control services identified suspected cases at airports, train stations and border crossings and also alerted those returning from countries with high disease prevalence. All suspected cases were laboratory tested and those confirmed positive were sent to infectious disease hospital units. The outbreak's time course could also be thus observed. During this time sanitation and medical services were put on emergency footings where the numbers of laboratories performing the RT-PCR test were increased from one to twelve by the end of August; being spread evenly throughout the country. An extra month was also allowed for these actions to account for university students returning from holidays abroad. Only 1% patients with AH1N1v virus was treated with Oseltamiwirem and fatalities were no different to the average from previous years or incidence observed in other countries. An increase at the beginning of November was however observed coinciding with the traditional All Saints Day in Poland where people congregate at cemeteries to pay their respects. The increase lasted 3 weeks where numbers of hospitalised patients and fatalities being within average limits seen in other countries including those neighbouring Poland. There was therefore no need to purchase vaccines nor undertake vaccinations.